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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: plane · cap · season · wax · pitch · charge · land · stem

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. wax — to grow
  5. land — a country
  6. land — to come down
  7. plane — a tool
  8. land — ground
  9. charge — electricity
  10. cap — a hat
  11. season — of the year
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. cap — of ice
  18. season — in sport
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. stem — to come from
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. charge — in control
  23. pitch — completely
  24. cap — a lid

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com